Chicago Elite Classic Friday Standouts
PrepHoopsIllinois was in attendance for the first night of action at the Chicago Elite Classic. This event annually features the best teams in the state of Illinois and around the country. Friday night presented three high school games finishing in…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingPrepHoopsIllinois was in attendance for the first night of action at the Chicago Elite Classic. This event annually features the best teams in the state of Illinois and around the country. Friday night presented three high school games finishing in an overtime thriller that was won by Fenwick over Oak Park River Forest. Curie topped East St. Louis and Niles Notre Dame defeated Loyola. Take a look at the standouts from day one at the Chicago Elite Classic.
PG Malik Jenkins (Niles Notre Dame – 2017)
Jenkins kicked the action off in the opener with a nice performance for Niles Notre Dame. The 5’10” point guard is a power and compact guard that uses his strength to get in the lane. Likes to use a runner to finish in the paint. Jenkins had 13 points. Projects as a D3/NAIA prospect.
PG Ramar Evans (Loyola – 2017)
Evans is a strong and physical point 6’2” that gets in the lane. Knows how to use his body to create space. Sound mid-range shooter. Scores well in the paint when attacking the rack. Can take a smaller defender down to the post. Struggles a bit with length. Evans is a solid passer that makes good decisions with the ball most of the time. He will be a good fit at D2 Maryville. Evans scored 13 points.
SF Terrence Hargrove (East St. Louis – 2019)
Hargrove only scored a handful of points, but once again he was the guy that pops off the floor for East St. Louis. The sophomore small forward stands at 6’5” with a long and athletic frame. He is a beast on the boards! Hargrove uses his nonstop energy and athleticism to beat out bigger opponents for rebounds. Plus offensive rebounder. Active on ball defender on the perimeter contesting shots and moving laterally. Offensively his best move was a blow by where he did a stutter step before getting past his man. D1 prospect that mid-majors need to start monitoring.
PG Allante Pickens (Curie – 2017)
Pickens is a 5’8” lead guard that played off the ball most of the night for Curie. What he is best at is spotting up for triples. He did exactly that in a major way at the CEC. He is always in position to shoot the rock and has a quick stroke from the perimeter. Can also step into it off the bounce if the defense gives him room. Also is quick in transition. Solid on ball defender that pressures the ball. He had 16 points.
PF Tyree and Treavon Martin (Curie – 2018)
The 2018 6’8” Martin brothers did an outstanding job fighting inside against the top player in the state in Jeremiah Tilmon. They fought hard on the glass high pointing rebounds and played tough interior defense using their length to give Tilmon tough looks at the basket. Treavon had multiple blocks in the contest. Tyree showed skill on a sweet high/low dish to his brother. They are going to be key parts of this year’s team. Both are D1 prospects in the 2018 class.
SF Jared Scott (OPRF – 2017)
At 6’6” Scott is a mismatch problem for a lot of defenses. He has mostly played on the interior, but showed considerable improvement with his ball handling against Fenwick. Scott was aggressive with the rock in his hands taking his opponents off the bounce slashing from the wing where he finished layups and runners. Crisp moves off the dribble. Jump shot has always been an asset in his game. Scott hit several spot up threes from the wing. Sweet lefty stroke. Solid rebounder. Could be a D2 prospect that is a versatile forward at the next level. At the minimum he is a high D3/NAIA kid.
PG Jacob Keller (Fenwick – 2017)
The state’s top unsigned potential D1 point guard was battling injuries throughout the night, but he played like a champ. The 6’3” left handed point guard presents great size for the position. He handles it well and knows how to run a team. Gets others involved by making great passes with vision and feel. Best pass of the day was his no look alley-oop to Jamal Nixon. Got to the rim throughout the game where he was either fouled or converted. Slick handles through traffic where he is slippery weaving through the defense. Didn’t shoot the ball great. He is a beast on ball defender. Maybe the best in the state. He has active hands and gets in passing lanes. Caused multiple turnovers with his pressure defense at the point of attack. Late in the game and in overtime Keller stepped up big. He had 20 points. Mid-major and low-major schools are crazy for not recruiting this kid. He still only holds 2 D1 offers and is a top 15 player in the state.
SG Jamal Nixon (Fenwick – 2017 – Minnesota State)
Nixon is one of my favorite players in this class because of the versatility that he brings to the table. At 6’5” he has a strong body which allows him to play physical against weaker opponents. An area that stood out was he was a crafty defender beating his man to their spot and getting under their skin at times. Outstanding passer for an off guard that makes the right decision with the ball most of the time. When he needed too Nixon scored. He attacked the basket and got to the foul line on a regular basis. Hit a wing three early in the game. Plus rebounder that gobbled up some big ones throughout the contest. He had 17 points and 10 rebounds.